The board is structured in duos for the administrative triangle (chair, secretary, treasure). The duos share responsibilities and work together – each half also has their own expertises and focuses within the board. Additionally, general board members have individualised focuses based on their background, expertise, and interests.
Co-chairs
Srishagon Abraham (he/him)
srishagon@coloredqollective.org
Hi! I’m Srishagon, and I go by Srish. I’m a racial justice activist and LL.M. graduate from the Catolicá Global School of Law. I have a background in international human rights law with a focus on Third World Approaches to International Law (TWAIL) and an intersectional focus on global migration and development studies. My work covers a wide array of topics, often centring on a critical analysis of European and international law theory and praxis through a decolonial perspective.
My activism finds its roots in Malaysia, through various efforts for the rights of marginalised communities, including my fellow Indian community. Since moving to the Netherlands, I have focused my activism on the rights and inclusion of racialised communities in the European (youth) green movement and in European politics and founded and coordinated the Racial Justice Task Force of the Federation of Young European Greens.
As co-chair, I oversee organisational, legal, and technical affairs of the organisation. Feel free to reach out to me regarding organisational structures, legal queries, or issues with our website (we are busy designing a new website)!
Function not filled
Co-secretaries
Ece Sivrikaya (they/them)
Hi, I’m Ece! I am a Sociology graduate passionate about creating a society with more compassion, open-mindedness, and critical thinking. My educational background lies in queer and decolonial approaches to Sociology, and I aim to put my theoretical knowledge into practice by working for more diversity and healthier community-building. I especially thrive when surrounded by other passionate individuals!
As co-secretary, I oversee the internal organisation of the board and foundation with Malva. My tasks include taking meeting minutes, overseeing reports, planning meetings, updating the calendar, and some other administrative bits. I am also involved in some of our networking connections such as Jong Gelijk, Nizu, and Utrecht Omarmt.
Malva Londoño (they/them)
Hi! I’m Malva, a political anthropologist with a background in transitional justice, migration, and gender and sexuality. I did my degrees at Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia, and later moved to the Netherlands for my masters at the University of Amsterdam, where I’ve been based since. My work sits at the intersection of critical, decolonial and queer theory, and I care deeply about connecting that to actual community-based political action using collaborative, participatory, and co-creation methodologies. Before joining Colored Qollective, I co-founded the Dutch chapter of ballroom collective House of Yeguazas and co-led its Juntanzas — a self-managed pedagogical space for queer Latin American migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees in the Netherlands.
In CQ I am co-secretary and board member. As co-secretary, I am responsible for managing the organisation’s email and keeping the shared calendar up to date. As a member of the board, I participate in the overall direction of the organisation, discussing issues related to funding, objectives, and strategies.
Co-treasurers
Leroy Berger (he/him)
Hello! My name is Leroy, I am an artist and designer working with themes of language, memory, archives, folklore and cultural traditions. My work is tied to my background as a queer indigenous person, exploring the loss of traditions and culture, and the acts of reclaiming and reviving those practices in current time. I am interested in the communal efforts of resistance and defiance.
At Colored Qollective, the main focus of my work as a board member is raising funds for the projects. I am also committed to contributing to the community in other various ways, helping to uplift and support CQ as a safe space for queer people of color.
General board members
Maui Miranda (she/her)
Mabuhay! My name is Maui. I’m an intersectional transfeminist activist and researcher who is passionate about relational and collaborative approaches and a firm believer in their potential for transformational change. I have previously worked with several feminist and LGBTI collectives and groups and have been actively involved in campaigns to advance the rights of sex workers, women in all their diversity, racialised migrants, and individuals who have been forcibly displaced.
My lived experience as a migrant woman of trans experience not only gave me a firsthand view of the precarious situations racialised migrants and forcibly displaced individuals of all genders, sexualities, and life experiences face but also paved the way for my advocacy and activism.
As a researcher, my work is situated at the intersection of gender, sexuality, and migration, exploring how a critical understanding of sexuality can lead to a more inclusive and accurate portrayal of gendered migration. As a board member of Colored Qollective, I hope to contribute to community-building and transformative care, (particularly in making the Transkliniek Utrecht sustainable, rights-based, and person-centered), partnerships and coalition-building, policy advocacy, fundraising, and resource mobilisation.
Yegane Mehrzad (she/her)
Hi~ my name is Yegane. I’m an artist, designer, and facilitator working at the intersections of feminism, care, and resistance. My practice centers on situated approaches to geopolitical and sociopolitical issues, reimagining liberation and agency through queer and feminist lenses.
I contribute as a general board member with a focus on community-centered creative facilitation and curation. Through this role, I hope to help nurture the CQ community by fostering collaboration, meaningful exchange, and accessible educational and creative resources. I’m especially committed to supporting BIPOC LGBTQ+ artists and makers, amplifying their voices, resilience, knowledge, and decolonial practices of community and collective care within the creative field.